Cubs' 2020 TV roster boasts plenty of depth

CHICAGO -- It was expected that the Cubs would unveil some of their on-air talent for the team's new Marquee Sports Network on Saturday at Cubs Convention. What came as a surprise was that the list of names announced grew to more than a dozen.

During a panel led by Crane Kenney, the Cubs' president of business operations, the team announced that the broadcast duo of Len Kasper and Jim Deshaies would be back in the booth for games on Marquee. There also will be considerable group of familiar names coming aboard as analysts, alongside some new additions.

"We were just humbled by the interest," Kenney said. "They all wanted to be a part of it -- to bring that color to our fans and those perspectives."

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The Cubs' list of Marquee analysts will include former manager Lou Piniella and former players Ryan Dempster, Mark DeRosa, Doug Glanville, Jason Hammel, Carlos Pena, Dan Plesac and Rick Sutcliffe. Dempster also will help out with studio coverage, and his "Off the Mound" show is also in the plans for Marquee.

The Cubs also announced the hiring of Chicagoland native Cole Wright, who is leaving the NFL Network to join Marquee as a studio host. Taylor McGregor, who previously was a part of the Rockies' broadcast team, has joined the fold as a field reporter for the Cubs. Chris Myers of Fox Sports also will help with studio and play-by-play work.

"You may see some collection of these folks for a few innings in the booth, too," said Mike McCarthy, the general manager of Marquee Sports Network. "It'll be a real variety."

McCarthy said the plan is for the Cubs to bring coverage "at a level that's never been done" by other regional sports networks. There are plans to experiment with unique cameras (an "El Mago" cam in the dirt for watching Javier Báez go through pregame work, for example) and microphones (amplifying in-game sounds) to create an innovative broadcast.

The Cubs also detailed some of the non-game programming plans. The pregame and postgame shows will be an hour each. There will be "Cubs Classics" games, pulling from more than 4,000 archived contests. There will be original documentaries, behind-the-scenes shows, countdowns and some Minor League coverage, among other shows.

The Cubs have also acquired studio programming and the other sports-related content to help fill the gaps between the Cubs-centric content.

"Obviously, the theme of our programming is very simple," McCarthy said. "It's Cubs, Cubs and more Cubs -- 24/7 Cubs coverage, frankly, that the fan base here has been deserving of for quite some time. The Dodgers have had it. The Red Sox have had it. The Yankees have had it. You guys now have it."

Cubs, Comcast still negotiating
The Marquee Network is set to launch on Feb. 22, beginning with the Cubs' Cactus League game against the A's. The team will air the entire Spring Training slate, followed by 150 regular-season games.

The Cubs are still working on carriage negotiations to ensure as many fans as possible can access the Marquee Sports Network. Right now, the biggest hurdle is striking a deal with Comcast, which makes up a large portion of the team's home broadcast territory.

"We know they're very savvy, smart and high-quality people," Kenney said. "And they've had the Cubs as part of their portfolio for 15 years. We feel confident we'll get a deal done with Comcast. We had conversations with them this week and more information coming, for sure, on that."

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As things stand, Kenney said, about 40 percent of households in the home territory (as outlined by Major League Baseball) have coverage via the 25 carriers already aboard. That includes AT&T, Mediacom and Charter Communications. For fans outside the home territory, Marquee games will be available through MLB.TV.

Kenney noted that Comcast has been offered the same deal that the other carriers agreed upon with the Cubs. While he expressed optimism about getting something done on that front, Kenney said it is "going to be difficult" to reach a deal with Dish Network.

For fans who have cut the cord, Kenny said the Cubs already have a deal with AT&T TV Now and are negotiating with all the major streaming services.

"We expect all of the streaming services to carry Marquee, as well," Kenney said.

Worth noting
• The Cubs will be expanding the netting at Wrigley Field to the "elbows" of the ballpark down the lines, according to Kenney.

• Kenney said the Cubs, who have not hosted an All-Star Game since 1990, are "due" and the team has already launched an effort with MLB. Kenney's hope is to push for the 2022 Midsummer Classic.

• The Cubs noted that the team has raised more than $36 million through Cubs Charities in the 10 years under the Ricketts family ownership. The team has built or restored 75 baseball fields or diamond projects.

• The Cubs are planning to have a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 19 to celebrate the completion of the decade-long 1060 Project (Wrigley Field renovations).

• The Cubs are hopeful that they will have a new organist hired in time for Spring Training. Longtime Wrigley Field organist Gary Pressy retired last year following 33 seasons at the keyboard.

• Kenney indicated that the Wrigley Field press box renovations will be complete in time for Opening Day.